托管费2006年考研英语阅读理解

2006

年考研英语阅读理解

Text 1

In

spite

of

talk

of

difference,

American

society

is

an

amazing

machine

for

homogenizing people. This is

casualness and absence of deference

into

arrays

of

goods

in

an

elegant

atmosphere.

Instead

of

intimate

shops

catering

to

a

knowledgeable

elite.

these

were

stores

could

enter,

regardless

of

class

or

background.

This

turned

shopping

into

a

public

and

democratic

act.

The

mass

media,

advertising and sports are other forces for homogenization.

Immigrants are quickly fitting into this common culture, which may not be altogether

elevating

but

is

hardly

poisonous.

Writing

for

the

National

Immigration

Forum,

Gregory

Rodriguez reports that today’s immigration is neither at unprecedented level nor r

esistant to

assimilation. In 1998 immigrants were 9.8 percent of population; in 1900, 13.6 percent. In

the 10 years prior to 1990, 3.1 immigrants arrived for every 1,000 residents; in the 10 years

prior to 1890, 9.2 for every 1,000. Now, consider three indices of assimilation------language,

home ownership and intermarriage.

The 1990 Census revealed that

common countries of origin spoke English

‘well’

or

‘

very well

’

after ten years of residence.

children of immigrants tend to be bilingual and proficient in English.

the original language is lost in the majority of immigrant families.

as a

“

graveyard

had

a

home

ownership

rate

of

75.6

percent,

higher

than

the

69.8

percent

rate

among

native-born Americans.

Foreigh-born Asians and Hispanics

whites and blacks.

By the third generation, one third of Hispanic women are married to

non-Hispanics, and 41 percent of Asian- American women are married to non-Asians.

Rodriguez notes that

children in remote villages around world are fans of superstars like

Amold Schwarzenegger and Grarth Brooks, yet

within the United States remain somehow immune to the nation's assimilative power.

Are there divisive issues and pockets of

seething anger in America? Indeed. It is big

enough to have a bit of everything. But particularly when viewed against America's turbulent

past, today's social indices hardly suggest a dark and deteriorating social environment.

word “gomogenizing”(Line 2 ,Paragraph 1 )most probably means

[A]identifying.[B]associating.[C]assimilat ing.[D]monopolizing.

ing to the author

, the department stores of the 19

th

century

[A]played a role in the spread of popular culture

[B]became intimate shops for common sonsumers.

[C]satisfied the needs of a knowledgeable elite

[D]owed its emergence to the culture of consumption

text suggests that immigrants now in the U.S.

[A]are resistant to homogenizating. [B]exert a great influence on American culture.

[C]are hardly a threat to the common culture. [D]constitute the majority of the population.

are Arnold Schwarzenegger and Garth Brook mentioned in Paragraph 5?

1

[A]To prove their popularity around the w

orld. [B]To reveal the public’s fear of immirtants.

[C]To give example of successful immigrants.[D]To show the powerful influence of American

culture.

the author’s opinion , the absorption of immigrants into American society is

[A]rewarding. [B]successful. [C]fruitless. [D]harmful.

Could the bad old days of economic decline be about to return? Since OPEC agreed to supply-cuts in March, the

price of crude oil has jumped to almost $$26 a barrel, up from less than $$10 last December. This near- tripling of oil

prices calls up scary memories of the 1973 oil shock, when prices quadrupled, and 1979-80, when they also almost

tripled. Both previous shocks resulted in double-digitinflation and global economic decline. So where are the

headlines warning of gloom

The oil price was given another push up this week when Iraq suspended oil exports. Strengthening economic

growth, at the same time as winter grips the northern hemisphere, could push the price higher still in the short

Yet there are good reasons to expect the economic consequences now to be less severe than in the 1970s. In most

countries the cost of crude oil now accounts for a smaller share of the price of petrol than it did in the 1970s. In

Europe, taxes account for up to four-fifths of the retail price, so even quite big changes in the price of crude have a

Rich economies are also less dependent on oil than they were, and so less sensitive to swings in the oil price.

Energy conservation, a shift to other fuels and a decline in the importance of heavy, energy-intensive industries

have reduced oil consumption. Software, consultancy and mobile telephones use far less oil than steel or car

production. For each dollar of GDP (in constant prices) rich economies now use nearly 50% less oil than in 1973.

The OECD estimates in its latest Economic Outlook that, it oil prices averaged $$22 a barrel for a full year,

coMPAred with $$13 in 1998, this would increase the oil import bill in rich economies by only 0.25-0.5% of GDP.

That is less than one-quarter of the income loss in 1974 or 1980. On the other hand, oil-importing emerging

economies

—

to which heavy industry has shifted

—

have become more energy-intensive, and so could be more

One more reason not to lose sleep over the rise in oil prices is that, unlike the rises in the 1970s, it has not occurred

against the background of general commodity-price inflation and global excess demand. A sizable portion of the

world is only just emerging from economic decline. The Economist's commodity price index is broadly

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A

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C

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2

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B

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red

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D

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